President Nancy McCabe

January is thought of as a time for new beginnings — diets, exercise, and all things to better oneself. As an organization, AAUW is no different. We are always looking at ways we can be a more effective community asset. As all of our members are important to the whole of AAUW, we need to ask ourselves how we can further the mission of AAUW. We have a full Board of Directors for this fiscal year, and they are doing a wonderful job of furthering the goals of philanthropy, education, research, and advocacy. However, soon the nominating committee will be looking for new members of the board, and you might ask yourself if this would be some place where you could lend a hand.

One of my goals has been to raise our community profile so more people and potential members know what we stand for. Along this line, we need to add value to our community. On March 10, we are sponsoring a high profile panel discussion on Human Trafficking in the Sacramento area. You probably know that this is a major problem that needs to be addressed. We are asking if you have contacts in other fraternal, social, philanthropic, religious, or government groups that may want to cosponsor this event. We are only asking that they publicize this event and attend with their members.

You can assist our branch in hosting this event by attending and learning what you can do to fight this evil in our community. If we can get as many AAUW members and guests to attend this event as came to the holiday party, we will be well on our way to filling the hall. You can invite your friends, neighbors, and coworkers to join us and perhaps carpool. You can volunteer to bring breads or cookies for refreshments. You can be a greeter or help with registration. We need all of your talents to present this great event to the community. I will be asking you to sign up for your part next month.

“Changing the World One Individual at a Time” is the motto of Courage Worldwide, the lead presenter at our Human Trafficking Forum. Together, we can do this!